About the book

This project began on Twitter in 2010 as @medicalaxioms in an attempt to share great aphorisms from famous dead doctors of the past. Unfortunately, I ran out of good ones after a short time and had to learn to write my own. The content covers a lot of old wisdom that students and residents learn on the hospital wards as they go through the training to become doctors. Most of it isn't really in books because it's too old fashioned—too unscientific and unprovable to pass the necessary tests to get published in a medical journal.

Customer Reviews

Equal parts education, heart, and humour, Medical Axioms is a collection of those little tidbits of advice you could easily see a seasoned doctor passing onto her residents and medical students during morning rounds.

Dr. Reid has a wit and a kindness to his writing that feels genuine because his message is genuine. These simple statements are much needed wisdom in medicine today. I hope this becomes standard issue for interns and residents.

This is one of those collections that will age well and get truer every year you practice. It’s the perfect gift for a new med school or residency grad, but also for the seasoned doc who will recognize the hard-won wisdom here like an old friend. A funny, insightful, and ultimately touching read from the halls of medicine.